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Coming now to the town as it stands to-day, the greatest 
objects of interest to Englishmen are the Abbey Churches of the 
Conqueror and his spouse. Little remains now of the original 
construction of that of Matilda, the ‘‘ Abbaye aux dames,” or 
La Trinité.” In the choir, which is cut off from the public and 
reserved as a private chapel for the nuns of the convent, is her 
tomb. The whole edifice was restored only half a century ago, 
but it conforms entirely to the design of the old building. From 
the towers in the west end of ‘ La Trinité” a grand view of the 
town is obtained, and one fully appreciates, on seeing its forest of 
spires, its well-earned sobriquet ‘‘ La ville aux clochers,” 
On the opposite side of the town stands the stern, severe 
church of St. Etienne or the ‘‘ Abbaye aux hommes,’’ throwing 
its twin spires far into the air. It was within her walls that the 
dramatic scene of William’s burial was witnessed. Deserted by 
all at his deathbed, his body was carried to Caen through the 
fidelity of a single knight. A decent funeral was not even 
accorded to him, for during the service the proceedings were 
rudely interrupted by one of the bystanders, who forbade the 
burial saying that the open grave occupied the site of his father’s 
house, which William had seized to secure the ground for his 
abbey. As he was not to be silenced by promises or threats he 
was finally propitiated by an immediate payment of sixty sous 
for the burial spot. 
A plain slab of black marble now covers his empty tomb, for 
his bones were scattered at the Reformation and the Revolution. 
In the centre of the town the tall and commanding spire of 
St. Pierre holds sway. Its height and beautiful symmetry of 
form justly place it in the front rank of such constructions, 
having none to surpass it in elegance and grace throughout the 
length and breadth of France. North of St. Pierre, on rising 
ground, lies the chateau, the scene of so mnch warfare and strife. 
Its origin is due to the Conqueror, though the greater part of it 
was the work of hissons. ‘The deep ditches on the north and east 
sides demonstrate well its almost invulnerable strength under 
those conditions of warfare which existed at the time of its 
foundation. Its Parte de Secours and drawbridge are the most 
interesting features that may be seen, as the interior is denied 
to the public, being used for military purposes. 
Numerous quaint old private buildings of every description 
confront one everywhere, and are all the more picturesque as 
they are all built of stone, brick being an almost unknown 
quantity in the town. Caen stone is well-known everywhere, 
and some of our most famous English buildings, including the 
